Solutions: Can you access a DOS prompt in Windows XP

By JOHN TORRO
© St. Petersburg Times
published August 5, 2002

Q. I am an old-time user dating back to the early 1980s and early dinosaurs such as the TI-99-4A (Texas Instruments/Bill Cosby era). Raised on DOS and currently using Windows 95, I will often use some simple DOS commands to solve some common problems. Though I have been weaned off DOS by Windows 95, I had the opportunity to try some hands-on stuff on a friend's Windows XP operating system. I like it! But I could not find any way to access DOS. I know Windows 98 allows access to DOS, and I think this is true of Windows Me. I'd like to switch to Windows XP, but don't want to lose the DOS access. Has Bill Gates done away with DOS access in Windows XP?

A. Poor Bill Gates gets blamed for everything, but on this one he is completely innocent. A simple way to get to a DOS (the more accurate term is now Command) prompt: Click Start and Run, type the word Command and press Enter. You can also find your old friend under the Programs, Accessories menu. Oh, this way of getting to a prompt will work on any Windows system.

Deleting IE files

Q. I have thousands of small files in several Content.IE5 subfolders such as C:\WINDOWS\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\JE6IBR3B. Can I delete these files or folders?

A. These are cache and cookie files used by the Internet Explorer browser. They are harmless and, unless you are in dire need of hard disk space, they are better left alone. However, if you are going to delete them, the best way is through the Internet Explorer menu bar, Tools, Internet Options, General tab. Click the Delete Cookies or the Delete Files button. The Settings button is where you can view and change the amount of disk space used for caching.

Putting e-mail on vacation

Q. How do you stop e-mail from accumulating while on vacation?

A. The simplest solution is to turn off your PC (and disconnect it from power, which you should do any time you'll be away for an extended period of time). Your mail will wait, being stored on the e-mail server of your Internet service provider. These will be downloaded when you power up your PC and your e-mail client is again accepting messages from the server.

Stopping a startup utility

Q. When I boot up, I get this message: "A fatal exception has occurred at 0028:C02A27A8 in VXD = VWin32(05)+00012D0." I press any key and the boot continues as normal.

A. The closest I could find regarding this action is if your computer is automatically starting a third-party Desktop Management Interface Start utility. According to Microsoft, the best solution -- other than contacting the manufacturer of the DMIStart utility to check on a fix -- is to disable the DMIStart utility as follows:

1. Restart the computer in Safe Mode (press and hold down the Ctrl key until the Startup menu appears, then choose Safe Mode).

2. Click Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, then System Information.

3. On the Tools menu, click System Configuration Utility.

4. On the Startup tab, click to clear the check box next to DMIStart.

5. Click OK. When you are prompted to restart the computer, click Yes.

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